In the Blood
by Sing To Life
Summary: Ever since Lucy was injured in battle, Natsu has been acting strange. Not only him, but everyone else is hiding something from Lucy that will test the limits of their relationship. NaLu, Hints of Gruvia, Gajevy, Miraxus, Jerza


"I've already told you a million times, Natsu, I'm fine," Lucy grumbled, purposefully pulling on the arm wrapped around his neck as she readjusted. Her other arm was pressed firmly to a bandaged wound on her side.

"I'm not letting you walk, Luce. If that wound reopens before we get back to Wendy, you could lose a lot of blood," Natsu replied seriously. The effect was ruined though as he grinned down at her, "And I like having you so close in my arms."

Rolling her eyes, Lucy tried not to blush at the happy feelings that filled her. Even after all this time, he could always fluster her with his straightforward words. "You're such an idiot. Why the hell I ever married you, I still have no clue," she muttered, suppressing a smile.

"Because you loooovvveeee him," chimed in Happy, flying above them with a large snicker.

"You stupid cat! There's no way—Oh...wait. Yes, I do," Lucy sighed in defeat. She glanced at Natsu, sheepishly. "Knee-jerk reaction," she apologized.

He just smirked and joined in with Happy's chant, "You looooooove me."

Resisting the urge to smack her head against Natsu's chest, Lucy pouted. "If I had a hand, I'd hit you both into next week."

The two boys laughed, Lucy reluctantly joining in moments later.

Back at the guild, Wendy had a bed ready for them in the infirmary. Setting Lucy down on the white sheets, Natsu stepped back to allow her room. Immediately, Wendy set to work, evaluating Lucy's condition.

"What happened? Did you get hurt anywhere else?" Wendy questioned, unwrapping the bandages around her torso. Virgo had done what she could to slow the bleeding, but under the first few layers, the gauze was still seeping red.

Lucy shook her head, going slightly pale from the pain of being handled. "Just, ah, my side," she winced, her breath catching in her throat. "Natsu was chasing the leader through the woods. I stayed behind to handle the lackeys. They all went down easy, but this one guy had these creepy acid tentacles. He hit me while I was distracted with his teammates. We finished them off, and Virgo patched me up."

"I found them after that. Once I caught up with my guy, he was a total pushover. It just took me a bit to come back," Natsu picked up the explanation, his eyebrows knitting together in concern as he watched Lucy's face scrunched up in pain.

Wendy hummed in acknowledgement, busy peeling back the final layers. The thin bandage had sunk slightly into the wound making it difficult to remove without hurting the blonde even more.

Lucy just gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, concentrating on her breathing. It would be over in a second, and then Wendy could heal her. She just had to hold on for a little bit longer.

With her eyes squeezed shut, she missed the sight of Natsu stiffening as the extent of her wound was revealed. Red and raw from the acid, the gash wasn't particularly large, but it certainly cut deep. Blood oozed from the tear like a slow leak.

Yet, for some reason, Natsu's eyes lit up at the sight.

"Uh, I'm going to find Mirajane and let her know that we're back," Natsu mumbled, covering his mouth with his hand before bolting out the door. Both girls nodded distractedly, not even sparing him a glance.

They were both started when the door slammed behind him. Wendy cast Lucy a questioning look, but she just shrugged as if to say 'Natsu, what can you do.' Giggling, Wendy nodded in agreement and set to work healing the wound.

A few days and some much-appreciated rest later, Lucy was ready to leave the infirmary. She found it slightly strange that Natsu hadn't returned yet, but she figured he might have gone home to wait, not expecting her to be up and about just yet. Or maybe he had checked in while she was asleep, and she just hadn't noticed.

Wandering out into the guild hall, she waved at a few concerned faces, letting them know she was okay before walking up to the bar. Mirajane was absentmindedly wiping down the counter. A large grin stretched across her face as her eyes stared off at nothing in particular. Her mind was clearly far away.

"Hey, Mira. Have you seen Natsu around?" Lucy questioned, sliding onto one of the bar stools.

Said woman reeled back in surprise, not having noticed the blonde walk up. "Oh, Lucy! It's you!" she blushed, embarrassed at being caught daydreaming. "No. Haven't seen him since he came to talk to me after you guys got back. What's up?" Turning to grab a plate of covered food, she set it in front of the celestial mage. "I figured you might be hungry after you woke up," she smiled warmly.

"Thank you," Lucy grinned back in appreciation, digging into the delicious looking food with zeal. "I haven't seen him since he left to talk to you. I guess I just thought he would come check up on me," she shrugged.

Turning away, the other woman didn't meet her eye as she responded. "Well, maybe he dragged Gray off for a fight down by the river or something?"

Lucy looked up from her food, surprised. Even though Mira was trying to come across as nonchalant about it, there was a false note in her voice. But why would she have any reason to lie about what Natsu was doing?

"Mirajane Strauss, what are you not telling me?" Lucy demanded, putting down her fork to fix the takeover mage with a stern look.

"I have no clue what you mean," she responded, looking anywhere but at the blonde staring daggers into her back. After a moment of guilty fidgeting under Lucy's stare, she purposefully glanced out at the guild, mumbled something about hearing her name, and promptly ran away.

Lucy was left to stare disbelievingly as the tough-as-nails woman fled from her like she had suddenly grown a second head. Looking around the guild, she searched for a familiar face to question about Mira's strange behavior. Suddenly, she realized that none of her usual friends were anywhere to be seen. She could have sworn that Levy and Gajeel had been curled up in the corner when she had arrived and that she had heard Erza and Gray's loud voices when she had been in the infirmary. Where had everyone gone?

A chill went down as her spine as a small voice whispered in her mind. _Not again_.

Immediately, Lucy shook herself, looking around the guild. There were plenty of people still here. Her friends wouldn't just _leave_ her behind without a word. The guild wouldn't just disband for no reason. People wouldn't just disappear out of her life again.

Taking deep breaths, she pulled out her communication lacrima, powering it up. Natsu never had one on him, but she knew Levy kept hers on her at all times.

And she was right. Levy picked up right away. "Hey, Lu-chan! What's up?" Levy's smiling face appeared on the crystal and sent a wave of relief through Lucy's body.

"Hi! Where are you?" Lucy smiled back, grateful her friend had picked up. She could hang out with Levy until Natsu returned from wherever the hell he had disappeared to. After the two girls had married their respective boyfriends, time for one another had been slim. It would be great to get an afternoon to themselves.

"Oh, um...I'm out shopping for some things right now," Levy responded, glancing to the left slightly distracted before looking back and offering a slightly strained grin.

Lucy raised her eyebrow but chose to ignore it. "Okay! Can I meet you up somewhere? As far as I can tell, Natsu's gone out for the afternoon, and I don't—" Both girls jumped as she was cut off by the sound of a whistle blowing from the other end of the connection. "What...Levy are you at the train station?" Lucy questioned, confused.

"No, no! It was the tea kettle boiling on the stove," Levy quickly responded, laughing it off.

"But you said—" 

Levy unceremoniously interrupted her. "I gotta go, Lu-chan! I'll see you later," she gave a wave and hung up.

Once again, Lucy was left staring in disbelief as one of her closest friends brushed her off. Was it avoid-Lucy-and-lie-to-her-face day or something? Because she definitely hadn't gotten the memo.

Refusing to descend into her dark thoughts again, she pushed back from the counter and walked to the door. Maybe she should just go home and have a relaxing evening of working on her novel. She could stop at the apothecary on the way home and grab some new bath salts and maybe some tea to calm her down.

Happy with her new plan, she practically skipped away from the guild. The winter air was crisp on her face, but she didn't mind one bit. It was a beautiful day—the snow was sparkling, the town was buzzing with activity, and she okay.

As she turned into the shopping district, though, a flash of red caught her eye. Up ahead about a block or two, Erza was exiting a shop with a man in tow. Lucy couldn't quite make out who it was due to the bags and packages piled high in his arms. Maybe Jellal was back in town for the day?

Hurrying to catch up, Lucy was about to call out Erza's name when the man turned. She sucked in a shocked breath, hardly believing her eyes.

There was Natsu, a familiar pout stretching his face as he opened his mouth to say something to Erza. She laughed in response, fixing him with a large and rather uncharacteristic smile as he burst out into a bright blush at whatever she had said.

Lucy's heart plummeted in her chest. Why would Natsu be out shopping with Erza when he couldn't even come check up on her in the infirmary? Not to mention the fact that they looked so much like a couple with Natsu carrying all her bags and the joking banter between the two.

Was Natsu cheating on her?

Tears sprang up in Lucy's eyes at the thought, but she quickly scrubbed them away. There was no way Erza could betray Jellal like that. They had been in love since they were kids; nothing could shake that.

And Natsu had vowed to love her. The ring on her finger was proof of that. He might be spacey and a little immature at times, but there was no way he would go back on his word so easily. When Natsu promised something, he always followed through, no matter the cost.

Still, Lucy couldn't bring herself to go near them. Something inside her didn't want it confirmed, didn't want her heart to break all over the ground when they told her that it was exactly as she thought. She wanted to believe in Natsu, and she knew she could, but she also knew she wouldn't be able to handle it if she was wrong. She would just ask him later when she had a better hold of her emotions.

So Lucy turned away and hurried home.

She tried her best to think of anything and everything to distract her from the scene she was admittedly fleeing from. The mature thing would've been to approach the two with an open mind and figure out the situation before assuming anything. But after the day she had had, the lies she had obviously been told, she just didn't have the room in her heart right then for anything else.

Maybe it was a blessing in disguise. She could take the night to herself to decompress, rest, and get herself back on course. Then she could face whatever tomorrow would throw at her.

But, her plans fell through when she finally made it back to her apartment. She and Natsu hadn't had the chance to move in together yet due to their supremely busy schedule and lack of funds from all the damages they were forced to pay for on their missions. It didn't help that the wedding and honeymoon had both taken a large chunk out of their bank accounts. She would've just had him move in to her place or vise versa, but neither one of them were willing to give up their respective homes for the other's. The only solution had been getting a brand new place to start fresh in.

Walking in to her apartment, she hung up her keys and jacket before slipping off her shoes with a sigh. The warmth from the heater felt nice on her chilled skin. She hadn't realized how cold she had gotten until her fingers started to tingle as the blood returned to warm them up. Flexing her fingers and toes to help speed up the process, she distractedly walked in to her front room only to stop short in shock.

There was nothing there. All of her furniture and all of her clothes and all of her things were gone. The only thing that remained in the room was a frozen ice mage with a box in his hands.

"Lucy! What are you doing here?" Gray exclaimed, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

Lucy just stared, incredulous. What was _she_ doing here? "Gray. Where is all my stuff?" she eventually spluttered out. Said ice mage fumbled with the box in his hands, practically dropping it as he tried to come up with a response. The lid peeked open just slightly, revealing stacks of paper and letters.

She was over there in a second, ripping the box from Gray's arms to confirm her suspicions. "My novel?! And my letters to my mom?!" she gasped, her eyes wide. "You _know_ how precious these are to me! How could —Why would you even...?" The betrayal she felt ripped through her, making her incoherent.

Throwing his hands up in a placating gesture, Gray was about to respond when another voice came from the doorway to her kitchen. "Juvia thinks that's the last of it. Love-rival will sure be surprised, won't she?" Juvia exclaimed as she rounded the corner with another box in her arms. When she caught sight of Lucy, she squeeked and dropped the package which proceeded to spill its broken contents onto the floor with a crash. Out fell all the pictures Lucy had placed around her apartment. Some of the glass in the frames was shattered while some of the wood was cracked.

That was the final straw. Lucy's composure broke along with her precious memories on the floor.

"Get out!" she yelled, glaring at the couple in front of her. "I don't care what the hell you think you're doing here, but I want you out! NOW!"

The two mages glanced at each other, clearly unsure of what to do. Gray tried to mumble out an explanation, "Lucy...I, well, Natsu, he—"

Lucy threw the box in her hand to the ground and grabbed her celestial keys, infuriated by the mention of her husband. "You can tell Natsu not to bother coming back after the crap he pulled today! I'm done! Just get the hell out!" she screamed, her face turning red as she tried to keep the tears inside. This was just too much.

They couldn't get out of there fast enough. In a few seconds, the only reminder that Gray and Juvia had been there was the empty apartment and broken frames.

Breathing hard, Lucy stared at the mess, her hands balled up in tight fists. She could feel her spirits reaching out to her through her link, but she forcibly kept their doors closed tight. She couldn't handle anyone else right now; she just wanted to be alone.

Grabbing the box full of her letters, she held them to her chest as she slid to the floor, the tears slowly starting to leak down her face. The sobs came next as she gathered up the last remnants of her mother in her hands. At the very least, they couldn't take away her memories.

Once she had calmed down, Lucy headed into the bathroom to splash some water on her face. Grabbing the edge of the sink, she stared into the mirror, trying to make sense of everything. So Mirajane was lying to her, Levy was leaving, Erza and Natsu were suddenly shopping buddies, and Gray and Juvia had stolen all her things.

None of this was making any sort of sense to her. If the guild was disbanding, Mirajane would have no reason to lie to her. Even if it was to protect her feelings, she would find out sooner or later anyways. And the guild hadn't felt heavy with sadness. If anything, it had seemed more abuzz with excitement over something.

Which wouldn't make sense if Natsu was suddenly cheating on her with Erza. She hoped, at least, that people would be more upset if something like that were to happen. And why would Natsu need to steal all her things if he was going to dump her? To add insult to injury? That just wasn't his style.

So then why was she getting so emotional over all of this? Obviously something was going on, but that didn't necessarily make it bad. Yet, her mind had jumped to the worst conclusions each time, and her emotions had gone haywire. She had never had any mood swings this bad before in the past...

Taking a sigh, she gave up trying to think about it. All the questions were just making her head hurt, and she was no closer to any answers. The only thing left was to find a place to stay for the night. Reluctantly, she realized that the guild was probably her best option at that point if she was going to be staying anywhere indefinitely. Even though Mirajane was currently avoiding some topic, she couldn't begrudge Lucy a bed.

It was then that Lucy's communication lacrima began to buzz in her bag. Returning back to the main room, she pulled it out and stared at it for a moment, debating whether she should answer it or not. Finally, she steeled herself, determined to be strong, and answered it.

Up popped Natsu's face. "Luce! I've been looking for you everywhere! Why aren't you in the infirmary?" he immediately asked, his voice cheerful and carefree.

"Because I'm not hurt anymore," she snapped back, irrationally upset by his nonchalant attitude.

He seemed to be slightly taken aback at the response. "Well..." he spoke slowly, trying not to upset her any more than he already had. However he had. "Do you mind coming back at say, 8:00? I want to have dinner with you."

"Yeah, sure. I'll be there," she clipped, holding in all the things she really wanted to say. With a beep, she hung up, not trusting herself to say anything more.

At the allotted time, Lucy was standing in front of the guild doors with her hands in her pockets and a frown on her face. Maybe this wasn't the best idea after all. She might need some more time to get her head on straight before seeing him. She could accidentally say something that she would never be able to take back. She should just come back when she knew he was gone and beg Mira to give her a room.

As she was turning away, determined to try again another time, the door opened up behind her. "Lucy?" came Natsu's voice through the darkness.

She immediately turned around, looking slightly guilty. "Hi, Natsu," she ducked her head, her cheeks flaming at being caught.

"What are you doing? Come inside," he grinned at her, putting his own hands in his pocket casually. "You've gotta be freezing."

All the anger she had felt earlier evaporated when she saw his familiar face. There was no way he would ever try to hurt her. This was still the man she trusted her life with, her partner in more than name alone.

"Yeah, okay," she mumbled, taken off guard by her own sudden acceptance. His grin got even wider as he offered her his hand and pulled her into the warmth of the guild.

As soon as she walked into the hall, she was surprised to see all of her friends lined up in front of the bar, looking straight at her. Before she had any time to think about the weird setup, shouts started echoing through the room.

"Surprise!"

Her eyes wide, Lucy looked back at Natsu with a questioning look before returning her gaze to the people around her. "Um...but it's not my birthday?" she questioned, clearly confused.

Much to Lucy's embarrassment, everyone laughed at her response. Natsu squeezed her hand, gaining her attention, and pointed to a large sign hung on the guild wall.

'You're pregnant!' it read in large, bold letters

Lucy almost fainted in shock. "What?!" she exclaimed, clearly confused. She glanced at Natsu for an explanation, only to find him laughing along with everyone else. "Is this some sort of joke?"

Natsu shook his head. "Nope. Luce, we're going to be parents," he stated with a proud smile.

Struggling to find words, Lucy just stared at Natsu, unbelieving. At the same time, she felt her friends walk up next to her, all with matching smiles painted across their faces. Everyone was there, Levy, Gajeel, Erza, Mirajane, even Laxus. Some of her friends from other guilds had shown up as well. She could see Yukino, Stingue, and Rogue out of the corner of her eye.

"You have to explain, Natsu! She doesn't get it!" chimed in Wendy's little voice off to her left somewhere. Lucy raised an eyebrow at Natsu, pleading him with her eyes to tell her something that made sense.

"Okay, I got it," Natsu put his hand up to silence the chime of voices that had been agreeing with Wendy. He took a deep breath before grabbing Lucy's other hand. Staring deeply into her eyes, he started to explain. "When you were hurt the other day, I could smell your blood. I've smelt it before when you've cut yourself, but this was different. Something inside of me, the dragon part, I think, told me that you were pregnant. So I left to tell Mirajane and get some sort of advice," he shrugged. "After you had fallen asleep, we approached Wendy and had her take a blood sample to check herself. And it came out positive," he beamed, his eyes sparkling in excitement as he looked at her expectantly.

It took her a second to find her voice. "Then why...why the shopping? And my apartment? And the lies?" she whispered, not allowing herself to feel anything yet.

Out of the crowd, Mirajane piped up. "That's my fault! I had him and Erza go out to get some decorations and gifts for this little surprise party," she explained, smile slightly chagrined as she peaked out from Laxus' arms.

"And I left to tell the other guilds about the party. I'm sorry I lied, Lu-chan," Levy chimed in, her face apologetic.

"Then Gray and Juvia...?" Lucy questioned, glancing around to search for their faces.

They both stepped forward, sheepishly. "Yeah, that's the second part of your surprise. We're really sorry you had to see that, though. We definitely get how it must have come across," Gray apologized, scratching the back of his head with the arm not wrapped around Juvia's waist.

Clearing his throat, Natsu pulled on Lucy's hands to gain her attention again before nodding at Happy who came zooming through the crowd. "The last part of your surprise is something I know you've wanted for a long time. I know this is short notice, but I bought us a house, something we can share together and call home in this new part of our life." It was then that Happy landed on their joined hands, offering a key in his paw.

By the end Natsu's explanation, tears were streaming down Lucy's face in an unstoppable flood. She was so extremely blessed to have such an amazing man as her husband. Everything he had done for her... she couldn't have asked for anything more.

The soft light of the lanterns around the guild bathed the party with a glow that Lucy would remember for years to come. When battles got tough or their daughter kept her up at all hours of the night, she would think back to this moment and remember just how much she loved and was loved. And always would be.


End file.
